Moldova

National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation.

Piata Marii Adunari Nationale, 1, Md-2033, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova

ance.gov.md

The coordination of the Olympiad is performed by the National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation. The Olympiad takes place in 3 rounds. The first round is at school level and is organized by the biology teacher who selects the students for the next round. The second round is the district / municipal one (35 districts and municipalities). This round is organized by the National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation, which offers a joint test in the country for the ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth grades. The third round, the final one, is the national one. It is organized by the National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation and the National Olympic Council for Biology. This round is carried out at the Moldova State University, Faculty of Biology and Pedology.

The first round is attended by all those interested, regardless of nationality. The Olympiad at this round are held in grades (IX, X, XI, XII) based on the contents of curriculum for that grade. The contest takes place in two languages (Romanian and Russian) at the request of the student.

In 1st round, the test is made up of biology teachers and includes different types of tasks:  simple choice, multiple choice, associations, true / false, explanation of schemes, etc. It is done in the school where the students study.

The 2nd  round takes place in the verification centers designated by the district / municipality. The test is composed by the National Olympic Council and includes 2 compartments: test A - simple choice, and Test B - multiple choice, associations, true / false, etc. The proposed tasks are within the limits of the curriculum for each grade (IX, X, XI, XII).

The 3rd (national) round is carried out at the Moldova State University, Faculty of Biology and Pedology. It takes place in 2 rounds: the theoretical test (part A and part B) which includes 50% of the curriculum topics of the competition grade (IX, X, XI, XII) and 50% of the other compartments of biology, and the practical test - 4 laboratory tasks from the fields scheduled for the International Biology Olympiad. Only students from X - XII grades participate in the practical test. The contest is held for each separate grade (IX, X, XI, XII).

For the selection of the national Olympic team participating in the IBO, are made 3 selection tours, in which the winners of the national round participate (about 24 students).

For the selected persons, is organized the summer camp at the premises of Moldova State University for additional training (about 2 weeks).

For the preparation for the IBO, before NBO, the teachers and students receive an informative note indicating the program (distribution in % of the contents) of the IBO.

Along with the textbooks, students can use the basic literature recommended in the IBO competition, the tests of the NBO and the university textbooks.

The winners of the NBO receive diplomas and cash prizes. For each grade (IX, X, XI, XII) are expected: first place - 1 student; second place - 2 students; third place - 3 students; mentions - 4 students.

Winners of the 12th grade can be enrolled directly without competition in higher education institutions from Republic of Moldova.

The 1st round (local) can be attended by all those interested from IX - XII grades. Their number may vary from year to year. (about 7000 students).

At the 2nd round (district / municipal) participate the winners from the gymnasium / lyceum from the district / municipality for each grade (IX-XII). (about 2000 - 2200).

At the 3rd (national) round participate the winners of each grade in the district / municipality, and, in addition the winners of the NBO from the previous year (about 160-180 students).

The school year begins on September 1 and ends on May 31. In June, are organized the graduation exams for gymnasium (9th grade) and lyceum (12th grade).

The number of biology hours per week for students participating in the NBO is 1-2 hours.

The number of class hours per week for students participating in the NBO is 30-35 hours.

Students and teachers are informed through letters and official messages by the National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation.

The information is transmitted by the National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation to the Biology discipline managers from the district / municipality and can also be accessed from the website of the National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation.

In the school year 2020 - 2021, the district / municipal and national Olympiads in Biology was not held due to COVID-19 restrictions.